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Rashid doune Arrasi

Khinasi » Ariya » Rashid doune ArrasiRashid doune Arrasi is the legendary liberator of Khinasi and the hero-king from whom the rulers of Ariya claim their descent. The term "Khinasi" is derived from the Basarji words meaning "people under the protection of el-Arassi".
Early Cerilian history is as much myth as record, but it is commonly agreed that the Anuirean Empire never dominated the city-state of Ariya, rather the city was ruled by Gerad doune Arrasi, a veteran of the battle of MountDeismaar, and, some say, one of Basaia's champions at that battle. Anuirean records suggest that RoeleAndu recognized Gerad as his ally and trusted him as a brother thus making him governor of the city after conquering it. Khinasi records suggest that Roele did not dare to try to conquer the powerful city and so recognized Gerad from necessity with the city never becoming part of the empire. Regardless, the Arrasi family ruled the city throughout the duration of the Anuirean empire, and it was held as the center of Basarji culture as a result of its perceived purity.
In 1277 MA the Anuirean empire which had long ago conquered the Basarji was not what it once was. The proud governor's who once shunned corruption from pride now wallowed in it and the laws holding all citizens of the empire as notionally equal (subject to social class and rank of course) was flouted with impunity, the great dukes of the Empire were independent in all but name, and the nations of the Rjurik, Brecht and Khinasi even more so. Then the young Alandalae Roele was crowned as Emperor. Alandalae had no intention of managing the decline of the empire as his predecessors had long settled for, nor did he place any value in the long traditions of tolerance for native ways which had long eased the rule of the empire and prevented dissent. Rather he intended to be remembered as the emperor who re-forged the empire and made it mightier than ever and make that empire Anirean from top to bottom - all would worship Haelyn as the greatest of the gods, all would recognize Anuirean social classes and mores, all would speak the same language and revere the same tales and songs.
Alandalae crushed rebellions by several Brecht cities, brought barons and even dukes to heel, smashed bandits and goblins that preyed upon merchants and towns, and reinvigorated the empire in many ways. All such works are near forgotten however, Alandalae is remembered mostly for his attempts to conquer all the lands of the Khinasi, pushing beyond the south coast to conquer the lands bordering the sea of dragons. Even more so, he is remembered for brutality, arrogance, and greed.
Rashid doune Arrasi was the ruler of Ariya when Alandalae commenced his campaign in the Basarji lands, recognizing that once Alandalae had conquered the last of the Basarji lands the young emperor would begin stamping out all traces of their culture Rashid began uniting the cities of the Basarji into a grand federation. Two years after Alandale announced his plans to conquer Khourane and Mairada Rashid launched a series of uprisings, raids, and as time went on, progressed to outright wars. After 20 years of increasing rebellion, a period known as the Basarji Revolution, the Barsarji controlled, openly or via puppet Anuirean governors, almost the entire south coast and Rashid's fleets were destroying nine in ten of the ships sent by the Empire to aid its colonies and governors in the east.
In 1299 MA Alandalae took personal command of the Anuirean legions and vowed to restore order to the Basarji, gathering a mighty force he marched through the Iron Peaks into Binsada intent on decimating the population and restoring it to Anuirean rule. Ahead of this mighty force the Anuirean fleet sailed along the Saere Siendere seeking to create strongholds to supply the vast army and to find the cities and armies loyal to Rashid so that they could be destroyed. Instead the fleet, led by Alandalae's nephew Caercuillin Roele, found the fleet of Rashid and disaster, Rashid scattered the fleet and captured Caercuillin. Rashid then sent word of Caercuillin's capture to Alandalae, knowing that the impulsive emperor would rush to Ariya to rescue his kinsmen. Rashid used his magic to first lower the Moura river, allowing Alandalae's knights to ford the mighty flow, and then to raise it washing away bridges and preventing the bulk of the Anuirean forces from crossing. Rashid then ambushed Alandalae's knights with his entire army and is said to have slain the emperor in personal combat - a claim disputed by many Anuriean scholars who suggest that the wizardly Rashid would have had little chance in direct battle against Alandalae who was a noted warrior, these scholars suggest that Alandalae was bested either by magic and his bloodline usurped after he was ensorceled, or that Rashid's forces captured Alandalae and Rashid committed bloodtheft on the emperor once he was restrained, any who make such claims in the lands of the Khinasi are advised to have a horse that is swifter than their wit.
After this victory all scholars agree that Rashid showed his true genius. Knowing that the Anuirean Empire would swiftly crown a new emperor - either one of Roele's line or possibly one of the Arch Dukes, and knowing that the Anuirean Legions could not be stopped from obliterating several cities of the Basarji now that they had crossed the Iron Peaks, he agreed a peace with Caercuillen. The Basarji nobility would be permitted to rule their lands with only minimal interference, the Empire would still technically rule the land and have rights over trade, passage, and so on, but with the Basarji nobles, like those of the Rjurik, seen as equals rather than as conquered peoples. Cercuillen accepted and led the legions back to Anuire, becoming emperor himself, Rashid was lionized by the Basarji, who renamed the land khir-aften-el-Arrasi (the lands under the protection of el-Arrasi) in his honor.
Just 12 years after his great victory, assassins of the Serpent poisoned el-Arrasi to prevent him from fully uniting the Khinasi as the Basarji had became known. Rashid's sons lacked his greatness and the Khinasi swiftly fractured, if not back to isolated city-states then to a number of realms not dissimilar to Khinasi's current state. While some of el-Arrasi's heirs have since managed to unite the Khinasi temporarily - usually in the face of some great threat, these federations have swiftly collapsed leaving only the cultural belief that Ariya and a scion of the line of el-Arrasi are the natural rulers of the Khinasi in their wake.